I got to go ice fishing last week. My ponds froze over and to get a bait in the water I had to knock a hole in the ice beside my dock. The ice was thin, only about a quarter of an inch thick, but it was solid.

The fish were smarter than me. They did not bite. In fact, I have not caught a fish in my pond since New Year’s Day. Although I keep trying, the fish just are not feeding in the ice water.

Since fish are cold blooded their bodies stay the temperature of the water they are in. At such low temperatures their heartbeat is extremely slow and they just do not need much to eat. They go for days simply holding near the bottom in some of the deepest water in the pond and not moving.

Bass are almost impossible to catch under conditions like we have right now so the Flint River Bass Club canceled our January tournament. We are supposed to be on Jackson today but it would be miserably cold for us, and the bass would have lockjaw, sitting there not feeding in the cold, muddy water.

I am very glad I don’t have to spend hours in a bass boat today, but I will give the bream in my pond a chance to hit. I hope I don’t have to chop through much ice!